1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cooling towers, used for the cooling of water in various systems. More particularly, this invention relates to a cooling tower, which may be a transportable cooling tower, having an improved water collection system.
2. Description of Related Art
Generally, cooling towers in the relevant field have a tower shell which holds various other components (described below); legs which position the cooling tower shell at a desired elevation above a datum surface (typically the ground or a pad), and which preferably permit transportation of the cooling tower by truck (for example, legs which retract, fold, are removable, or any combination thereof); a means for moving air through the cooling tower, typically one or more fans located at the air inlet or discharge which draw or force air upwardly through the cooling tower through one or more layers of cooling tower fill, positioned above an air inlet area such that air flows upward and counter to downwardly flowing water; a means for distributing water across the upper surface of the fill material, namely a water distribution system above the fill, generally comprising piping including a water supply header, lateral lines, and multiple nozzles to distribute water across the top of the fill surface; and drift eliminators above the water distribution system which minimize the amount of water droplets which are blown out of the unit by the upward air flow.
A key structural and functional element of the cooling tower of the present invention is a water collection system which allows air to pass upwardly through the water collection system while collecting water that falls into it, so that the water can be gravity drained or pumped out for cycling through the system. A further key aspect of the present invention is a cooling tower having a water collection system which gives rise to a number of fabrication and operational advantages over the known existing designs.